ANOTHER DAY

Hanging out with my crackers and bling!

Ethan and Maggie watching Bob-Bob (Spongebob) on a Saturday morning. On non-Saturday mornings, we are very thankful for DVR and Spongebob when someone is crabby or needs to unwind! Otherwise, he doesn't get to watch much TV...

My favorite little boy in the entire world... he was actually saying cheese in this picture. :)

18 months

SUMMER FUN/NOT-SO-FUN CONTINUES

This past weekend was Ankeny's SummerFest. There are many activities including a carnival, beer garden with concerts, the Saturday morning parade, fireworks, and much more. We were able to attend the parade on Saturday morning - we came home with a bag full of candy and enjoyed popsicles and bottled water while at the parade. We had great curbside seats thanks to some friends who went out to put a tarp down at 6:30 that morning! As for the other events, we didn't get a chance to get out - we were sure to take things a little easy this weekend...

As for the not-so-fun...we had to take a trip to the urgent care clinic on Friday afternoon. Ethan had a severe allergic reaction to sunblock. The kid wears sunscreen everyday, but our daycare had run out of the norm, and used something different - who knew?! So....."severe" means his throat and potentially his tongue were swelling (he was coughing continuously like water went down the wrong pipe). Thankfully, our daycare provider has experience with allergies and asthma attacks, so she knew exactly what was going on. She called me right away at work and thankfully Mike had just gotten into town from work, so we could get Ethan to the doctor within 15 minutes of this happening. After 2 emergency allergy shots and 2 hours of monitoring at the clinic, we were able to go home! Not fun, but given the circumstances, it's best that we know and that everyone is ok (even Mom and Dad!).

Ethan watching the parade in Levi's car chair...he made his rounds, back and forth throughout the duration.

One float was handing out little sport bottles of water - Ethan could care less about the candy, he was loving his "juice."

Ethan with Levi at the 2010 SummerFest Parade

Ethan with Daddy - it looks like Daddy snagged a Popsicle for himself! Oh, and some floats were handing out bead necklaces - Ethan has about 6 now and loves to wear them all at once!

Ethan with Mom enjoying his orange popsicle which, yes, some ended up on Mommy's khakis! But, he doesn't like to eat the ice part, he just likes the juice part!

18 months

18 MONTH CHECKUP

Today was Ethan's 18 month checkup...

Weight: 32 lbs., 4 oz. (97th percentile)

Height: 34" (92nd percentile)

Head Circumference: 19.25" (89th percentile)

Our last checkup until he turns 2!!!

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY

It's been a rainy day here in central Iowa, so we have been enjoying inside activities. First off, we didn't get out of bed until 10AM - then we picked up/cleaned before lunch. Daddy bought sweet corn and we had that for lunch - YUM! We are preparing for some friends to come over for round 2 of sweet corn and dinner, then off to Ames for the fireworks (if the rain clears).

A BIG lunch for Ethan - he got to sit at the table like a big boy and he got to eat Iowa Sweet Corn for the first time in his life (he didn't have teeth last year!). We didn't quite trust him with the ear of corn itself, especially with the innocent terror in the background (ah-em, Maggie...)

The 2nd big activity of the day - nap time! Mommy doesn't typically rock-a-bye, but he was really wound up today. If we do rock-a-bye, we need the following: Hippo, Curious George, Woody, Cy, blanket (specifically the blue and pink one we need to return to Grandma Marie's house), the pillow (it fell off when he climbed up - see the left of the picture), and of course, Mommy and Ethan. Then we need to situate everyone once Ethan is on my lap. Yeah, this lasted about 3 minutes before I finally said - ok, get in your bed! He did...but we have to get everyone situated again! See why he wears me out?!?!?!?!

SUMMER FUN

We went to the Ankeny Splash Park to start off our 4th of July weekend.

He really liked filling up the bucket and pouring it on himself or mommy's legs.

Ethan was thirsty...but he was too tired to hold on to the actual sippy cup. He put the cup in the bucket than drank away. The things he thinks of....

18 months

Ethan playing t-ball in the front yard...

Swing batter...he sort of has it figured out!

18 months

TRIP TO THE GRANDPARENTS HOUSE

Ethan playing with Grandpa Tom's train from when he was little, Mommy played with it too when she was little.

Ethan is holding the ladder for Grandpa Tom. What a helper :)

Almost 17 months.

SURVIVAL MODE

Ok, ok, ok....I know - if I did blogging for a living, I would be fired! It's been a very busy month with both of our jobs, unfortunately, needing to come before our family. We've been in survival mode...so, our extra time is spent with life necessities. We have a little bit of time off for the 4th of July, so we are hoping to wind down and enjoy life again!

To pick up from last time....Ethan spent a week at Grandpa and Grandma's - I'll post some pictures above from Grandma Marie. Once we got back to work/daycare after that vacation, Grandma Marie returned quickly that next weekend for a conference, and extended her stay to watch Ethan while Mike and I enjoyed some time together for our 5 year anniversary! We just went out to Red Lobster and played mini-golf, but hey, it was nice to remember what it was like just the 2 of us!

We had a pretty low-key father's day. Daddy wanted to go to Taco Casa in Des Moines - and yes, it is the EXACT same food as the Taco House in Okoboji. After that we made a special trip to the Woodsmith Store (the super high-end hardware store) - Ethan stayed content with the bird feeder that looked like an ice cream sundae. Then, as all father's days should end, we took a nap.

Last weekend, Mike's parents visited us. Friday night we headed out to dinner and Old Navy - in which we looked at Toy Story t-shirts for Ethan. Mike and I each held up a t-shirt and asked him which one he liked - what does our kid do? He takes both pointer fingers and points at each t-shirt at the same time. It was quite a good laugh! Saturday we headed to the DSM Farmer's Market before it got too hot and humid. Then that afternoon we went to Ethan's friend, Brody's, birthday party. They had a sprinkler and a pool setup, so Ethan dove right in! Then to wrap up the day, we played mini-golf with Grandma and Grandpa.

Now, we are approaching the 4th of July. Tonight we attended the downtown DSM fireworks - we have a prime spot at Mike's office building. Ethan acted a little scared initially, but then just pointed and yelled at the fireworks for the duration of the show! We plan to attend the Ames fireworks on the night of the 4th, so we get one more round of "pretties."

As for an update with Ethan....

His next doctor's appointment is Monday the 5th, so I will post his new "stats." He's really growing up - we are past the teething stage for now, in size 5 diapers, and is learning to communicate with us rather well. I had a REAL conversation with Ethan the other day, it's those moments that make me stop in my tracks and wonder where my baby went!

His big things are - juice!, mamamamamamamamamamamaa (mama, I want m&m's or whatever other junk food he can see), where go? (playing peek-a-boo or saying bye-bye), and the ever infamous BALL! He is also very good (and entertained) with peek-a-boo - he doesn't quite get that when you uncover your eyes you are supposed to say boo...he says it as he covers his eyes and then says "where go?" as he continues to cover his eyes. Silly kid. He also learned to salute this week - he puts his hand in the "pecking" position, pokes himself in the eye (not hard), and shoots his hand forward like a salute. He just grins and giggles when he does it.

I'll be back throughout the weekend to post pictures....

MEMORIAL DAY 2010 (PART 2)

A nice snooze for the way home!

Ethan with Curious George

Driving Grandpa Tom's truck. He really enjoys the REAL toys in life!

almost 17 months

MEMORIAL DAY 2010

Memorial Day Weekend

Ethan spent all last week with Grandma Marie and Grandpa Tom - giving Mike and I a week off from parenthood. It was nice but we still managed to go, go, go while Ethan was away. Oh well, we will get a break in about 20 years or so! And for those of you that may be wondering - NO we are not planning to have another kid for a while (if we even have another - we will take toddlerhood one kid at a time!).

Mike and I joined Ethan in Spencer last Thursday evening. He was most excited to see Maggie :( priorities! Mike then worked all weekend with his family for the Avenue of Flags organization that his Grandpa Dean started in the 60's. Mike's uncle Doug created some excitement with a not-so-fun heart attack on Friday - he is doing much better and is home now. Doug we love you - go eat your wheat bread and take a damn nap already!

On Monday (Memorial Day), we put up about 1300 flags in the cemeteries in Spencer. Then at the end of the day, we took them all down! Definitely a great workout and a great community service project.

We tried to leave our long weekend on a good note of Taco House for lunch today (Tuesday) but ended up getting it to-go (which still counts!) and rushed back to Spencer to take shelter during a tornado warning. No tornado or damage, but it made for an interesting route back to Ankeny to avoid all the storms heading into Iowa. We made it home just in time for the round of severe storms hitting our area. Currently we are in a severe t-storm warning and there have been a handful of tornado warnings to our west, so it should be an interesting evening!

Back to work and daycare first thing tomorrow! Thank goodness for a short week!

Ethan and Grandma Nancy with the Clay County Fair pig outside of the Avenue of Flags Building

almost 17 months

Being goofy and saying 'hi' to everyone at the Flag Building

A traditional Johnson nap that could not wait until after he was finished with Sunday dinner!

4 generations - Great Grandpa Jerry Dean's Flag, Grandpa Rick Dean,

Dad Mike Dean, and Little Guy Ethan Dean

Play us a tune Ethan! It actually didn't sound half bad, but then again, I am his proud mommy!

KIDDO IS GROWING UP

Ethan has decided that he does not want to sleep in his crib anymore. He likes to sleep in his rocking chair. Sigh...we have since taken the mattress out of the crib and laid it on the floor - doesn't really matter though. We will be upgrading to a toddler bed soon.

16.5 months

Having breakfast with Maggie in the kennel.

Playing in his sandbox - he doesn't ever want to come back inside! For the record, Maggie does not like the sandbox. :)

RANDOMS

Anyone need gift ideas? Ethan rather enjoys dog kennels, especially his cousin-dog Dakota's kennel!

16 months

He's a pro at the Wheel :)

DR. DREW TAKES THE ATTENTION

I apologize it has been awhile since I have posted. We were in Spencer 2 weekends ago, and this past weekend was Veishea weekend in Ames, so we were busy with weekend activities. The weekend started with Dr. Drew's event at ISU on Friday night - he did a book signing after he spoke, and the University Book Store (in case you wondering, this is where I work!) was privileged to sell his books before/during the signing. I jumped the gun and volunteered to work this event from 9:30PM-2AM - it's been awhile since I have seen 2AM, but its just like riding a bike! Nothing was stopping me from meeting Dr. Drew! And, yes, I put my arm around him in the picture. On Saturday, we attended the Veishea parade and the Spring football game and then headed home for a nap! Rick and Nancy (Mike's parents) joined us for the weekend, so we had a wonderful array of activities to enjoy!

VEISHEA 2010

Ah, what a silver fox! Aren't we cute? No worries, Mike is enjoying making fun of me!

Heather and Dr. Drew

April 16, 2010

Veishea - Late Night with Dr. Drew

Ethan and Mommy at the ISU Spring Football scrimmage!

Ethan-15.5 months

VEISHEA 2010 PARADE

Ethan's favorite float in the parade - balloons!!!

The homemade Shrek float

The homemade Scooby Doo float

The official start to the 2010 Veishea parade

Grandma Nancy and Grandpa Rick joined us for the parade. We had excellent seats just down from the MU - it was second row, so not the best seats for candy! :)

15 MONTH CHECKUP

Ethan's 15 month check up went well - he always seems to impress the doctor! He is 28 lbs 4 oz (95th percentile), 33.5" tall (100th percentile), and his head circumference was 19" (85th percentile). So he is big and healthy - and proportionate! He has 13 teeth, with the 14th one ready to pop through. And, he is due for yet another hair cut! He knows where his toes, nose, belly, and hair are - we are working on fingers, tongue, and ear. He has completely mastered eating with a fork and spoon (he prefers a fork). And, I think he said 'poop' today - and yes, there was poop.

EASTER 2010

Ethan loves dogs - he tries to "rescue" each and every one of them from captivity.

Easter Day

15 months

Butt shot!

Filling up that basket like a pro!

Double whammy!

It was chilly this morning, but the clouds cleared and it warmed up for us to go outside for an Easter egg hunt. Nothing fancy, but it entertained him!

Opening Easter gifts -

A soccer ball, basketball, crayons and paper from Mom and Dad

2 hooded towels and M&M filled egg (which he would not let go, and eventually had to take a nap with it - he doesn't know there are M&Ms in it yet!) from Grandpa Rick and Grandma Nancy

Books, plates, PJs, and Goldfish from Grandpa Tom and Grandma Marie

He also had a fun filled day at daycare on Friday - they had a big Easter egg hunt and he brought home all the eggs he found (soccer ball basket in the background - filled to the rim with plastic eggs). They also colored their own eggs to bring home.

SPRING BREAK 2010

Ladies Man...

Ethan 14.5 months

Last snow day...during Spring Break (after we returned from 60 degree weather in NYC)

Helping Daddy with the floor...he was a BIG helper.

The finished product!

NEW YORK CITY

The Dean's to NYC -  2010

March 12-17th

We visited many attractions, but definitely didn't get to see everything. It was cold and rainy the first few days, but on our last day we were able to enjoy sunny, 60 degree weather to visit the Statue of Liberty. We plan to go back again someday, preferably in the summer time when we could enjoy a picnic in Central Park and the venture up the Empire State Building.

Toys R Us Ferris Wheel - Times Square

Times Square

Another shot of Times Square...there is no way to see every detail that is put into the area.

It was hard not to think of how much money exists in Times Square - the cost of food, etc. as well as the advertising dollars for the huge billboards and video boards.

NEW YORK CITY

Hershey's candy store - Times Square

Inside the M&M Store - Times Sqaure

The never ending wall of M&Ms - Mel would have been in heaven!

The store was 3 stories of candy, merchandise, statues...Ethan fell asleep.

Wall Street - it was actually full of tourists and not really any business people.

Statue of Liberty